Category: Stock Portfolio

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BYD, the fast growing supplier of pure electric buses to cities across Europe, has announced a €20 million investment in a bus assembly plant in the northern Hungarian city of Komárom.

The plant which will eventually employ up to 300 people and be capable of assembling up to 400 vehicles a year on two shifts. Initial output will be BYD’s world beating range of emissions free electric buses and fork lift trucks but the Hungarian subsidiary’s name – BYD Electric Bus & Truck Hungary Kft – hints at other ambitions.

The Hungarian plant will begin production in the first quarter of 2017. It will have its own R&D center and battery test facility.

Speaking at a ceremony at the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Budapest, Isbrand Ho, BYD Europe’s Managing Director, said: “Today’s announcement reinforces our company’s commitment to the European market. This is our first manufacturing facility but it won’t be our last – we are actively looking for other locations”.

He added: “We chose Hungary both because of its central location in Europe and its long tradition of engineering excellence and indeed bus making, as well as the very friendly welcome we have received from the authorities here”.

Mr. Peter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Hungary welcomed BYD and pointed out Komárom is the only manufacturing plant outside China besides California and Brazil. He highlighted the fact that BYD was not just building a manufacturing plant but also opening a battery testing unit and R&D center.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares. It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Garbage may make you hold your nose, but that doesn’t mean the garbage truck has to.

BYD Company Ltd. and the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group Ltd., are planning the world’s first pure electric sanitation truck lineup – a total of 26 different models – to serve the Beijing’s administration. The Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group is expected to replace 45% of its current diesel fleet for pure electric vehicles before the end of this year, and 100% of the fleet is to be switched to pure electric within 2017.

BYD’s pure electric sanitation truck lineup

With large-scale and comprehensive capabilities, the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group is the most important sanitation company in Beijing. It is dedicated to providing a broad range of services comprising street sweeping, solid waste transportation and processing, water and air pollution management, consulting and design, vehicle manufacturing, investment and financing, and mining resources development.

The company covers the whole industry chain and is one of the most integrated companies in the environment sanitation industry in China.

The 26 models of pure electric trucks – with load capacities ranging from 1 to 32 tons – will be used as sweeping, garbage, and sprinkling trucks, carrying out multiple tasks including sweeping, collecting, compressing and transporting waste, as well as refrigerated transportation for hazardous waste. The truck lineup will cover all operational processes including collection, transportation and disposal. Amongst the trucks many advantages are low noise, zero emission, efficiency, long driving ranges, and life-time batteries.

Additionally to the BYD cutting-edge Iron-Phosphate Battery, the lineup is equipped with several other BYD core technologies. For example, the electric integrated axle assembly technology, which smartly combines the driving motor with the automatic gearbox and drive axle, largely improving transmission efficiency. At the same time, the integrated technology saves extra room for more batteries.

Another important technology is the use of the independent electric motor to control the fan, and water and fuel pumps. Additionally, an innovative design completely integrates the control systems for both the vehicle’s superstructure and chassis.

Another technology is the CAN (Controller Area Network) system, which further improves the vehicle’s reliability. The vehicle body is made of lightweight aluminum alloy which decreases the weight and extends both driving range and life span. The truck is equipped with cameras that grant a 360° view, so that the driver can monitor the whole operational process. The truck features GPS, which renders the vehicle traceable in case of emergency. Furthermore, with its Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) feature, the truck can be used as a charging unit to serve other trucks in need of charging. Moreover, the issue of “range anxiety” is tackled because the vehicles can be fully charged in 2 to 3 hours for a driving range up to 400 km or 8 hours’ heavy-duty operation.

Diesel powered trucks have emitted gargantuan amounts of hazardous waste gases in the past years. On February 24, 2016, the State Council demanded that larger fleets of electric sanitation and logistics trucks be adopted, but BYD and the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Engineering Group had already taken action – after setting up a joint venture dedicated to manufacturing pure electric sanitation trucks in August 2015.

Additionally to the unquestionable environmental benefits, the truck’s economic benefits are obvious as well: the operational cost of an 8-ton pure electric loading truck is almost half of that of its diesel counterpart.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares. It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Europe’s largest fleet of electric buses are now in service in London. The 51 single-decker buses were built in Britain as part of a partnership between China’s BYD Company (electric powertrain technology and batteries) and Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL).

The 51 buses are operated by Go-Ahead London from its Waterloo garage, servicing two Transport for London (TfL) routes – 507 and 521.

The order for the BYD ADL Enviro200EV buses follows a three-year trial that proved the buses could consistently run a 16-hour shift without a recharge. The long range of these vehicles is due to BYD’s iron-phosphate battery technology and the light aluminum body manufactured by ADL in Falkirk, Scotland.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “It’s vital that we act now to clean-up our capital’s toxic air and do everything we can to help prevent the thousands of deaths it causes each year. I’ve set out a comprehensive plan to improve our air, and the transformation of London’s bus fleet will play a key role in making our transport cleaner and healthier.

“These first two electric bus routes right through the heart of London are another step towards the end of conventional diesel buses on our roads. This will deliver extensive air quality benefits and position us as a true world leader in adopting ultra low emission vehicle technology.”

The introduction of this environmentally friendly bus fleet to London will contribute towards improved air quality for its residents as the buses are estimated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 700 tons a year.

In a trial operation, BYD is also testing the world’s first pure electric double decker buses, five of which are in service with London operator Metroline on behalf of TfL. Future versions will be built in partnership with ADL.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares. It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

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Chinese auto and battery manufacturer BYD Company Limited is bringing its pure electric service vehicles and a battery storage system to the Port of Los Angeles.

The $26 million Green Omni Terminal Demonstration Project will demonstrate zero emission technologies with Pasha Stevedoring and Terminals L.P.

The project will be the world’s first marine terminal generating all of its energy needs from renewable sources at full build-out.

BYD will provide a 2.6 megawatt battery storage system and two class eight electric yard trucks.

The state-of-the-art BYD battery storage system will be used to store solar power to recharge the BYD electric yard trucks, thus providing a sustainable and truly zero emission operation.

This project will be BYD’s first example of taking transportation off the grid and making it 100 percent renewable and self-sufficient in North America.

BYD expects to deliver the trucks and the battery storage system by the end of 2016.

BYD has been expanding the types of pure electric service vehicles it makes, and recently debuted pure electric forklifts.

Integrated Transportation and Energy Storage

BYD has been emphasizing integrated transportation and energy storage.
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In June, BYD signed a global framework cooperation agreement with Enel, a multinational power company and leading integrated player in the world’s power industry.

BYD notes that the agreement signed by Wang Chuanfu, Chairman and President of BYD, and Ernesto Ciorra, Enel’s Head of Innovation and Sustainability, will pave the way for possible cooperation projects in electrified transportation and energy storage aimed at residential, commercial and industrial applications, all based on BYD’s proprietary Iron-Phosphate batteries.

BYD is 9% owned by Berkshire Hathaway, and Berkshire has seen the value of its investment skyrocket as BYD became a world leader in a wide variety of areas.

What are those areas?

BYD is number one globally in EV vehicles. The company vaulted to the number one spot in 2015 from only being number ranked seventh a year earlier.

BYD is the number one maker of rechargeable batteries, and like Tesla even has rechargeable battery home storage already on the market.

BYD is number one in pure electric buses that come in a variety of sizes. From commuter buses to buses for long distance travel, BYD has been quietly conquering the world, and frankly right now has no major competitors. In April 2016, BYD achieved a major milestone, the production of its 10,000th pure electric bus.

BYD’s also rapidly growing a host of other product lines that include LED lighting, photovoltaic panels for solar farms, and other electric vehicles such as forklifts.

As for solar panels, in the U.S., BYD’s already has a total 109MW using its 270,000 PV modules being developed in California. It also has other projects using its modules, including a 65MW plant in Utah, and a 28MW plant in Arizona.

Perhaps you haven’t heard of BYD, but they are no fly-by-night company. BYD has nearly 180,000 employees working in 22 industrial parks across the globe.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares, and today owns roughly 9.1% of the company.

It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

(BRK.A), (BRK.B)

Korean multinational electronics company Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has purchased a $449 million (3 billion yuan) stake in Chinese auto and battery manufacturer BYD Co. Ltd.

The move comes after Samsung was not included in a list of foreign battery manufacturers approved by China.

In taking the minority position, Samsung joins Berkshire Hathaway, which owns 9.1% of BYD.

According to Bloomberg, Samsung purchased 52.3 million BYD shares at 57.4 yuan apiece in a private placement, and the purchase will decrease BYD Chairman Wang Chuanfu’s ownership roughly 1.9% to 18.8%.

Berkshire’s stake in BYD has worked out well, as it has seen the value of its investment skyrocket as BYD has become a world leader in a wide variety of areas.

What are those areas?

BYD is number one globally in EV vehicles. The company vaulted to the number one spot in 2015 from only being number ranked seventh a year earlier.

BYD is the number one maker of rechargeable batteries, and like Tesla even has rechargeable battery home storage already on the market.

BYD is number one in pure electric buses that come in a variety of sizes. From commuter buses to buses for long distance travel, BYD has been quietly conquering the world, and frankly right now has no major competitors. In April 2016, BYD achieved a major milestone with the production of its 10,000th pure electric bus.

BYD’s also rapidly growing a host of other products that include LED lighting, photovoltaic panels for solar farms, and other electric vehicles such as forklifts.

As for solar panels, in the U.S., BYD’s already has a solar farm with a total of 109MW using its 270,000 PV modules being developed in California. It also has other projects using its modules, including a 65MW plant in Utah, and a 28MW plant in Arizona.

Perhaps you haven’t heard of BYD, but they are no fly-by-night company. BYD has nearly 180,000 employees working in 22 industrial parks across the globe.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares. It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

No telling how much Samsung’s shares will appreciate, but they obviously want in on a company that is quickly becoming leading company in both the IT industry and automobile industry.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.

(BRK.A), (BRK.B)

The electric vehicle in China is on a quick path to move from a rarity to a substantial part of the transportation mix.

In a speech given at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting of New Champions 2016 in the city of Tianjin, China, BYD’s CEO Wang Chuanfu stated that “the turning point for new energy vehicles has finally arrived.”

Wang noted that the production and sales of new energy vehicles exceeded 300,000 units in 2015, representing a three-fold growth year-on-year, and accounting for a 1.3% share of overall vehicle sales in China.

He pointed out that it took ten years to go from zero to the current 1%, but it may take only another five years to reach 10%.

Sales of new energy vehicles in China are projected to move up dramatically and are forecast to hit 30% by 2025.

In 2015, BYD became the number one seller of electric cars in the world. It was a dramatic rise for a company that only ranked seventh in 2014.

In April 2016, BYD achieved another major milestone, the production of its 10,000th pure electric bus.

BYD is thoroughly dominating the rapidly growing market for emissions free buses of all sizes.

BYD and Berkshire Hathaway

In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares, and today owns roughly 9.1% of the company.

It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million is now worth roughly $1.77 billion.

For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.

© 2016 David Mazor

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.